Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Lebanon: Elections

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatassessmentthey have made of the results of the Lebanese parliamentary election which took place on 6 May; and what impactresults will have on their foreign policy approachin the Middle East.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We were pleased to see and we welcome the fact that Lebanon's elections took place peacefully and in an orderly way on 6 May. This was an important step for democracy. We now look forward to the swift formation of a new government capable of addressing the crucial issues facing the country. The United Kingdom remains steadfast in its commitment to Lebanon's stability, security and prosperity.

USA: Foreign Relations

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have contacted the White House in response to President Trump’s comments on knife violence in London in his speech to the National Rifle Association convention on 4 May.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We have not discussed knife violence in London with the White House following the President's remarks. We are confident that the US Government is aware via its Embassy of the action we are taking action to restrict access to offensive weapons as well as working to break the deadly cycle of violence and protect our children, families and communities.

Thailand: Refugees

baroness goudie: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Thailandabout ensuring the safety of newly arrivedrefugeesfrom Burma.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are aware of recent reports of refugees arriving in Thailand following increased violence in Karen State and our statement on 11 May 2018. Refugees have been crossing from Burma into Thailand for nearly 30 years, and there are established camps and international support for them in Thailand. Our Embassy in Bangkok is following developments along the border with Burma: it has not made representations to the Thai government about the safety of newly arrived refugees but stands ready to do so if we judge this necessary.

Philippines: Human Rights

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of the Philippines about (1) the murder of Father Mark Ventura, and (2) the large number of extrajudicial killings that have taken place in the Philippines during the current presidency; and what was the outcome of those discussions.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: We are committed to the promotion of human rights, including tolerance and freedom of religion and belief. Whilst we have not discussed the specific case of the murder of Father Mark Ventura, we have continued to call on the Government of the Philippines to promote a safe and enabling environment for human rights defenders. Furthermore, we regularly raise concerns with the Government of the Philippines over the high death toll associated with the "war on illegal drugs", and stresses the need for prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into killings. Most recently the Minister for Asia and the Pacific (Mr Field) raised this issue with the Philippines Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs in December 2017 and with the Philippines Ambassador in April 2018.

Department for International Development

Gaza: Health Services

the lord bishop of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Israel about the scale of acute and long-term medical care available to those injured in the protests at the border with Gaza between 30 March and 14 May, including the provision of increased resources in Gaza and access to facilities on the West Bank and in Israel.

lord bates: The UK maintains regular contact with the Israeli authorities, and we most recently raised our concerns about the situation in Gaza with the office for the Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) last week. UK officials expressed concern about the health system in Gaza, and reiterated the importance of unimpeded access and protection for humanitarian goods and personnel. Officials also urged COGAT to allow fuel to enter through the Kerem Shalom crossing and to approve medical permits for the injured.

St Helena: Airports

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the total cost of construction and bringing into operation of the airport at St Helena; what restrictions in aircraft types and passenger numbers are in place to enable them to be used without aircraft being endangered by wind shear.

lord bates: In April 2016, when the airport was brought into operation the project spend was £238.9 million. St Helena is a remote location and its airport is classified as a Category C aerodrome. Prior to flight operations, all required members of the flight crew must have received specific training with respect to operations into Category C airports, including the effect of adverse weather conditions, severe turbulence and recovery from wind shear conditions. In addition, a specific airport briefing is required prior to the flight and a Category C St Helena Operating Pack is issued to the crew. The ability to operate is determined by the Aircraft Operator in conjunction with the appropriate Aeronautical Authority Regulator. Passenger numbers will be determined by the Operator’s Aircraft Operating Certificate and fuel requirements for Island Holding in the event of adverse weather. The full terms of use for St Helena Airport are published in its Aeronautical Information Publication.

St Helena: Aviation

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many commercial flights to St Helena a week are currently operated; what is the average fare from mainland destinations;and whether these services are subsidised.

lord bates: There is currently one scheduled commercial flight each week from Johannesburg to St Helena. This service will be expanded later this year with an additional midweek flight. The current fares policy agreed between the St Helena Government and the operator (SA Airlink) is published by the St Helena Government and can be found on their website. The sale of tickets is the responsibility of the air operator, fares vary depending on demand and the average fare is commercially sensitive. The UK government underwrites the service to ensure continuity of air access.

Department for Education

Police: Bahrain

lord scriven: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have provided financial or any other types of support to the University of Huddersfield’s new masters course in Security Science for Bahrain’s Royal Academy of Policing.

viscount younger of leckie: As the Noble Lord, Lord Scriven, notes, the University of Huddersfield is an independent, autonomous body responsible for the development of the courses it offers. The university was selected by Bahrain’s Royal Academy of Policing to provide an MSc course in security science and this is a private arrangement between these parties. I can confirm, however, that support for the MSc in security science has not been provided by the Department for Education, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office or the Home Office.

Children's Centres: Closures

lord storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many and which Children's Centres closed in 2015–16, 2016–17 and 2017 to date.

lord agnew of oulton: Since 18 September 2017, data on children’s centres has been supplied by local authorities via the department’s Get Information about Schools database portal at: https://www.get-information-schools.service.gov.uk/. The figures in the table below are based on information supplied by local authorities as at 11 May 2018[1].Financial YearNumber of children’s centres closed2015-161822016-171352017-18121 April to 11 May 20181 A list of the children’s centres that have closed in each financial year since April 2015 is attached. Councils are reconfiguring services to deliver them more efficiently. If a council decides to close a children’s centre, statutory guidance is clear that they should demonstrate that local children and families would not be adversely affected and that local areas continue to have sufficient children’s centres to meet their needs. Over the same period, the number of two, three and four years olds in good and outstanding early years provision has increased, as set out in the attached table. [1] Based on information supplied by local authorities as at 11 May 2018, 11:30 am. These figures may be different to previous answers, and could change again in future, since local authorities may update the database at any time. 



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Ministry of Justice

Small Claims

lord bassam of brighton: To ask Her Majesty's Government on what basis they decided to propose an increase to the limit to small claims to £2,000 despite the recommendation by Lord Justice Jackson in his 2009 Review of Civil Litigation Costs that a rise to £1,500 would be sufficient to account for inflation.

lord keen of elie: The upper limit for personal injury claims to enter the small claims track has been set at £1,000 since 1991.Using the Retail Price Index to adjust for inflation since 1991, the uprated limit for small personal injury claims would be around £2000 in 2017/2018 prices. In line with this, the Government is proposing by secondary legislation to raise the small claims limit for all non-road traffic accident personal injury claims to £2000.

Prisons: Ministers of Religion

lord murphy of torfaen: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer byLord Keen of Elie on 4 January (HL4280), what meetings they have had about the development of the assurace and compliance process for the future delivery of chaplaincies in prisons; and which faith leaders have been involved in any such discussions.

lord keen of elie: The future of the Assurance and Compliance process for Chaplaincy will be discussed with those Faith Advisers who sit on Chaplaincy Council at the joint meeting with the Chaplaincy HQ Team on the 12th June 2018. This will be followed by an invitation for those Faith Advisers not present at the meeting to comment by post or email. We recognise the importance of faith and the positive impact that it can have on the lives of offenders, which is why there are multi-faith chaplaincy teams in every prison.

Prisons: Ministers of Religion

lord murphy of torfaen: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the current requirement for a prisoner to receive a pastoral visit from a chaplain within 24 hours of requesting one will be carried into any future policy framework.

lord keen of elie: Whilst the future policy framework(s) in relation to chaplaincy have not yet been agreed, HM Government recognises the value of the pastoral care offered by Chaplains. Any new policy will ensure such care is available in a timely manner which reflects its importance in the overall care of those in prison.

Drugs: Crime

baroness kennedy of cradley: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many children and young people have been convicted of drug offences in (1) 2015, (2) 2016, (3) 2017, and (4) 2018.

lord keen of elie: The number of children and young people (aged 10-17 years old) who were found guilty of drug offences in England and Wales from 2015 to 2017 can be viewed in the below table: Age201520162017Age 10-17 (Juveniles)248022912254 (1) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.(2) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used. Data for the number of children and young people convicted of drug offences in 2018 will be available in May 2019.

Treasury

Pensions

baroness burt of solihull: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the recommendations in the Centre for the Study of Financial Innovation's reportTheDependency Trap—are we fit to face the future? that (1) a working partner should be allowed to contribute to a non-working partner's pension fund, and (2) couples should be able to contribute to a joint pension fund if they so wish.

lord bates: Individuals can make contributions of up £2,880 each year to a personal pension, self-invested personal pension, or stakeholder pension and receive basic rate income tax relief at, currently, 20% or £720 on their contribution. Those contributions can be funded by a working partner. Regarding the proposal of a joint pension, since 1990, the UK's income tax system has been based on the principle of independent taxation. This provides that each individual is taxed on their personal income and has their own tax-free personal allowance, and their own set of tax thresholds. This fundamental principle provides everyone with absolute confidentiality for their personal tax affairs. For this reason, the Government is not currently considering changing this policy. A joint pension fund would not be consistent with the system of independent taxation.

EU Grants and Loans

lord berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the likelihood of the UK being required to repay EU funding awarded to British organisations following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU; and what guarantees they require from recipients of such funding that they will reimburse the Government for any funds that the Government have to repay to the EU.

lord bates: Under the terms of the financial settlement, set out in a draft Withdrawal Agreement and welcomed by the EU-27 at March European Council, the UK will continue to participate in all EU programmes funded by the 2014-20 Multiannual Financial Framework. Under this agreement, funding for UK participants and projects will, therefore, be unaffected by the UK’s withdrawal from the Union for the entire lifetime of such projects.

Air Passenger Duty: Northern Ireland

lord empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government by how much the Northern Ireland Block Grant was reduced to allow the Northern Ireland Executive to set a nil rate of Air Passenger Duty on transatlantic flights from Northern Ireland in the last three financial years for which figures are available.

lord bates: Reductions to the Northern Ireland Executive’ Block Grant to reflect the devolution of long haul Air Passenger Duty in Northern Ireland for 2015/16, 2016/17 and 2017/19 are set out in the table below : 2015-162016-172017-18£2.269 m£2.166 m£ 2.224m These figures are not cumulative.

Taxation: Domicil

viscount waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they intend to continue to adhere to the OECD residency criteria for tax purposes post-Brexit.

lord bates: The UK will continue to adhere to the OECD’s tax standards after Brexit. These include the provisions relating to residence in the OECD model treaty that the UK uses as the basis for bilateral double taxation agreements.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Local Government: Constituencies

lord rennard: To ask Her Majesty's Government which local authorities in England that are due to hold elections in May 2019 have been subject to boundary reviews conducted by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England; which ofthose boundary reviewshave already received parliamentary approval; and when they expect to lay the remaining orders before Parliament.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: There are 52 local authorities in England due to hold local elections in May 2019 that have been subject to, or are currently the subject of, an electoral review conducted by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England. Those authorities are: Allerdale; Ashford; Babergh; Basingstoke and Deane; Bath and North East Somerset; Bolsover; Carlisle; Cheshire West and Chester; Chichester; Copeland; Crawley; Dartford; Dover; East Cambridgeshire; East Devon; East Hampshire; Eastbourne; Forest of Dean; Harborough; Hertsmere; Horsham; King's Lynn and West Norfolk; Lewes; Mid Suffolk; North Devon; North East; Derbyshire; North Norfolk; Norwich; Nottingham; Preston; Redcar and Cleveland; Reigate and Banstead; Ribble Valley; Richmondshire; Rother; Runnymede; Rutland; Scarborough; South Gloucestershire; South Norfolk; South Somerset; Surrey Heath; Teignbridge; Tendring; Test Valley; Tewkesbury; Torbay; Torridge; Warwick; Wealden; West Berkshire; and Windsor and Maidenhead.Full details of all current and previous reviews are published on the Commission’s website www.lgbce.org.uk/The Commission intends to lay any outstanding orders for Parliamentary approval by, at the latest, Christmas recess.In addition, there is an expectation that the Commission is likely to undertake electoral reviews of the five new district councils – Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole; Dorset; East Suffolk; Somerset West and Taunton; and West Suffolk – which would be established by the secondary legislation that Parliament has recently approved, and which provides for their first elections to be held in May 2019.

Leasehold

lord kennedy of southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the adequacy of protection in place for people and organisations that have leasehold interests in land from freeholds being sold by local authorities to third parties.

lord bourne of aberystwyth: We are constantly working to ensure that protection for leaseholders is adequate. That is why on 21 December 2017, the Government set out a package of measures to tackle abuses and unfair practices in the leasehold market. This includes introducing legislation to prohibit the development of new build leasehold houses, other than in exceptional circumstances, restricting ground rents in newly established leases of houses and flats to a peppercorn (zero financial value) and working with the Law Commission to support existing leaseholders - including making buying a freehold or extending a lease easier, faster, fairer and cheaper. As part of the reform, we will consider extending the existing Right of First Refusal for flat lessees (Part 1 of the Landlord Act 1987) to house lessees. In general, the provision states that where a landlord is proposing to sell his interest in a building containing flats in relation to which the Right of First Refusal exists, they must, by law, first offer it to the tenants before offering it on the open market.

Department for Work and Pensions

Hearing Impairment: Telecommunications

baroness thomas of winchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have received from (1) sign language users, and (2) organisations representing deaf people, concerning a free to access video relay service.

baroness buscombe: Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has received representations on access to a video relay service. This includes recent correspondence from Jim Fitzpatrick MP (Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness) in relation to changing existing legislation to expand Ofcom’s remit to include the regulation of Captioned Telephone Relay and Video Relay Services.

Pensions Regulator

lord myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many contribution schedules to a pensions scheme have been issued by the Pensions Regulator since it was established in 1996; and what assessment they have made of the number of schedules issued.

baroness buscombe: The independent Pensions Regulator was established by the Pensions Act 2004. Its predecessor, the Occupational Pension Regulatory Authority did not have the same level of powers as the Regulator does now and was not able to issue a schedule of contributions. The legislative framework within which the Regulator operates gives it a range of powers to protect the benefits of members of occupational pension schemes. It is down to the Regulator to decide which of its powers are appropriate in each investigation it undertakes. Contribution schedules are required to be agreed by the trustees of the pension scheme and the sponsoring employer. However, where agreement cannot be reached, the Pensions Regulator has the power to set the schedule of contributions in relation to a recovery plan. Since this power was introduced, the Pensions Regulator has issued one warning notice, but has never been required to exercise the power to issue a schedule of contributions.

Pensions Regulator

lord myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effectiveness of the Pensions Regulator.

baroness buscombe: The Pensions Regulator was established by the Pensions Act 2004. The assessment of the performance of the Pension Regulator was decided by the previous government as follows: The Pensions Regulator has a broad set of responsibilities across occupational pension schemes. Its performance, as measured by Key Performance Indicators, has been steadily improving since 2015. In 2015/16, it fully met 10 out of 17 of these indicators, whereas in 2017/18 it met 17 out of 18. Working collaboratively with the Department for Work and Pensions, the Pensions Regulator has successfully implemented one of the most significant reforms in recent years, the introduction of Automatic Enrolment. To date, 9.6 million workers have enrolled into a pension by over 1.2 million employers. This is being achieved at a time of great change and challenge in the pensions landscape, with changes in longevity and structural changes in the workplace. Since 2005, the Regulator has secured more than £1 billion for pension schemes through settlements and the use of its anti‑avoidance powers. Not withstanding this, the Regulator has also recognised the need for it to change and adapt to the world as it is now, and since 2016 has been engaging with industry on how best to be a clearer, quicker and tougher Regulator. The Government’s Defined Benefit White Paper proposals will provide the Regulator with additional tools needed to effectively respond to today’s challenges.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Alex Smiles: Sunderland

lord shipley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations (1) the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and (2) the Environment Agency received from (a) Sunderland City Council, and (b) Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Authority about requests for assistance to make the site of the Alex Smiles waste and recycling centre on Deptford Terrace in Sunderland safe to members of the public, and the local environment following that company’s insolvency in May 2015.

lord shipley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assistance (1) the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and (2) the Environment Agency can give to (a) Sunderland City Council, and (b) Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Authority in clearing up the site of a recent waste fire at the former Alex Smiles waste and recycling centre on Deptford Terrace in Sunderland.

lord gardiner of kimble: The Environment Agency (EA) has worked closely with Sunderland City Council (SCC) and the Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (FRS) to look at all opportunities to remove the waste at the former Alex Smiles site in Sunderland. During the company’s administration process, hazardous and inert waste were removed from the site. However, the company’s lack of funds resulted in large quantities of combustible waste remaining on site. At that time the EA served an Enforcement Notice on the administrator to ensure the site was secure. The EA believes that had these measures not been undertaken the risks to public health and the environment from this fire would have been greater. Prior to the start of the fire on Monday 14 May, the EA was working with SCC on a remediation plan involving contributions from SCC and a manufacturing firm located adjacent to the site. This plan remains the preferred solution of all partners and will be further assessed and developed once the fire is out. As part of this process, the EA would have adopted an enforcement position involving some waste material being capped on site. Since the fire broke out the EA has been working closely with SCC and the FRS to respond to the waste fire in order to minimise the risk to public health and the environment. This included a joint tactical approach to both tackling the fire and media and communications. The EA is working with waste contractors to ensure all waste that is removed to tackle the fire is disposed of properly and any necessary permissions are in place in time for removal work. The EA provided the initial air quality monitoring and continues to provide water quality monitoring to assess the environmental impact and inform Public Health England’s advice to the public. The EA will continue to work with all relevant partners to explore opportunities to remove the entirety of the waste on site once the fire has been extinguished. Defra has not received any requests for assistance from Sunderland City Council or Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Authority. The EA are the body responsible for the waste enforcement and operational issues.

Home Office

Immigration: Caribbean

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the effect of Windrush immigration failures on the pensions of those affected by those failures; and whether they will take this into consideration when considering the level of compensation that affected individuals will receive.

baroness williams of trafford: The Government is clear that where the Windrush generation have suffered loss, they will be compensated and the Home Office is setting up a new scheme to deliver this, which will be overseen by an Independent Person.As a first stage, the Home Office has launched a Call for Evidence which is an opportunity for those who have been affected, and their families, to tell us what happened, how it has affected them and what they believe the compensation scheme needs to address.The information supplied as part of the Call for Evidence will be used to inform the design options and scope of a compensation scheme.

Foreign Relations

baroness helic: To ask Her Majesty's Government what provision there is in UK law for all agents representing the interests of foreign powers in a political or quasi-political capacity to disclose their relationship witha foreign government and information about their activities and finances.

baroness williams of trafford: UK law does not currently require such disclosure. However, as my Rt. Hon Friend the Prime Minister announced in the House of Commons on 14 March (Hansard col. 856), as part of an update on the Salisbury incident, the Government is reviewing whether there is a need for new counter-espionage powers.

Refugees

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Williams of Trafford on 8 May (HL7459), how many Liaison Officers they have in (1) Italy, and (2) Greece; and how many experts and interpreters the European Asylum Support Office and the European Commission have sent to the Greek islands.

baroness williams of trafford: The UK (Home Office) has deployed two Liaison Officers to Greece and one Liaison Officer to Italy. The UK also continues our long-running specialist deployments to the EU Commission and EASO to support their work in Greece (UK officers included in numbers stated in the below reports).The number of experts and interpreters deployed to Greek islands by the European Asylum Support Office (EASO) is available in their annual report. The most recent annual report was published in September 2017 and covers 2016 and can be found here: https://www.easo.europa.eu/easo-annual-report. In 2016 there were 543 experts deployed in Greece. EASO also deployed interpreters/cultural mediators to conduct its operations. Published figures for 2017 are not available yet.In terms of European Commission staff in Greece, this can be found in the European Commission’s Annual Activity Report on DG Migration and Home Affairs. The most recent report covers 2016 and can be found here: https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/annual-activity-report-2016-migration-and-home-affairs_en

Visas: Kosovo

lord hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have tocall for an improved and simplified EU visa regime for students and professionals from Kosovo.

baroness williams of trafford: The UK does not participate in EU visa regimes with third countries as we do not participate in the relevant aspects of the Schengen agreement. It would not be appropriate for the UK to call for an improved EU visa regime with Kosovo. The UK has its own visa arrangements with Kosovo.

Corruption

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the conclusion in the National Crime Agency'sNational Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised Crime 2018 that there is an increased likelihood of British businesses coming into contact with corrupt markets and being drawn into corrupt practices after Brexit; and what steps they are taking to safeguard against those risks.

baroness williams of trafford: The Home Office is reviewing the conclusions of the National Crime Agency's National Strategic Assessment of Serious and Organised Crime 2018. The government is committed to supporting businesses which operate overseas. The UK Anti-Corruption Strategy, which runs from 2017-2022 sets out 18 clear commitments from across government to improve the global business environment.

Islamic State: Internet

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are taking toblock access to internet archive sites that disseminate material including ISIS bomb making manuals and videos of the execution of opponents and non-compliant members of minority communities.

lord alton of liverpool: To ask Her Majesty's Government what further action they intend to take in response to the call by Andrew Parker, Director-General of the British Security Service, to secure the support and cooperation of social media firms to combat the spread of ISIS ideology.

baroness williams of trafford: The UK has been at the forefront of the battle against online terrorist material. We have worked closely with a variety of Communications Service Providers (CSPs), including archive sites, to improve their response to terrorist exploitation of their platforms. This has included helping to set up the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism (GIFCT), an international, industry-led forum to prevent terrorist use of the internet.We want to see the GIFCT leading the cross industry response to reduce the availability of terrorist content on the internet, so there are no safe places for terrorists online. This includes removing content within one hour of upload; securing the prevention of re-uploads; and ultimately preventing new content being made available to users in the first place. There is still more to be done in engaging smaller platforms, but we have made a good start.Separately, on behalf of the Home Office, the Metropolitan Police produces a list of URLs of unlawful terrorist content that have not been removed by CSPs. This list is shared with filtering companies whose products are used across the public estate, such as schools, to establish appropriate levels of filtering, thereby limiting access to terrorist and extremist material.

Department for Exiting the European Union

Customs

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the EU chief negotiator's comments that the UK's custom deal proposals are not realistic.

lord callanan: The final form of the new customs relationship with the European Union will be discussed with the Commission, and form part of the negotiations. We are confident that a positive deal can be reached. The UK is fully committed to negotiating a deep and special partnership with the European Union, which is in the mutual interest of the EU and UK.

Customs

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the uncertainty regarding their customs proposals on the progression of Brexit negotiations.

lord callanan: The Government has put forward two approaches that most closely meet our objectives. The final form of the future customs relationship with the European Union will be discussed with the Commission, and form part of the negotiations. We are confident that a positive deal can be reached.

Department for International Trade

Trade Promotion

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much money will be granted to the Department of International Trade in order to safeguard trade promotion jobs; and whether this figure will be enough to ensure that the Department has the resources necessary to fulfil its responsibilities.

baroness fairhead: The Department for International Trade inherited a Spending Review 2015 settlement that requires it to generate efficiencies in its services. This includes trade promotion activity.On top of this settlement, the Department received additional funding of £79.4m over four years at the 2016 Autumn Statement to fund an expansion of the Trade Policy Group. This year the Treasury has allocated additional funding of £74m to cover essential EU exit spending to transition existing EU trade agreements with third countries, build capability for negotiating new trade deals in the future and for dealing with market access, trade disputes and trade remedies issues. This will also fund the digital systems and infrastructure to support this activity. This amounts to a total of up to £97.3m of additional funding in 2018-19.The Department is carefully prioritising its work to ensure it can fulfil its responsibilities and is working with the Treasury as it does this.

Overseas Trade

baroness mcintosh of pickering: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have secured continued recognition from any third countries that the UK will be treated as an EU member state for trading purposes during the transition period.

baroness fairhead: The UK and EU have agreed that the UK is to be treated as a Member State for the purposes of international agreements during the Implementation Period. This is a positive and significant step to secure continuity in our international trading relationships as we leave the EU.Discussions on this approach are taking place with our trading partners, and many have already issued public statements in support of the approach.

Trade Remedies Authority

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether a Trade Remedies Authority will be set upbefore the UK leaves the EU.

baroness fairhead: This Government recognises the crucial role which UK manufacturers and producers play in our economy. We are committed to ensuring that UK industry has the protections it needs against injury caused by unfair trading practices. We are working to set up the Trade Remedies Authority by the time the UK leaves the EU – to ensure that the UK can continue to provide a safety net to domestic industries.

Trade Remedies

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have set up the appeal mechanism required under World Trade Organization rules which will enable the UK to challenge trade defence measures taken by other countries against UK goods.

baroness fairhead: The UK is committed to a rules based international trade system and is in the process of establishing the Trade Remedies Authority to ensure that UK businesses continue to be protected from unfair and injurious trade practices once we leave the EU. The UK, will be able, as the EU currently can, to pursue an appeal against trade remedies measures imposed on UK goods, in line with the domestic processes in the country imposing measures against UK goods. The Government will also be able to bring a case to WTO dispute settlement over measures that are not compliant with WTO agreements.

The Senior Deputy Speaker

House of Lords: Telecommunications

baroness mcintosh of pickering: To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker how much the move to Skype for Business (1) has cost so far, and (2) is anticipated to cost; and what are the anticipated benefits of the change.

lord laming: The Senior Deputy Speaker has asked me, as Chairman of the Services Committee, to respond on his behalf.Parliament’s telephone system was installed in 1985 and – like much of the Palace of Westminster’s core infrastructure – is at the end of its supportable life and at significant risk of failure. Replacement parts for the system are no longer made and the organisation has been buying second hand parts for the last ten years. There are no longer providers in the marketplace that support the corresponding software. If the system were to fail we could not reliably restore the service.Given this situation, a project was initiated in 2014 to examine the options to replace the telephone system, whilst also meeting the needs of Parliament’s mobile workforce and the impending estates challenges associated with the restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster. That project identified Skype as the most suitable solution to meet these needs.The implementation costs, to March 2018, are £2.7 million (revenue) and £1.7 million (capital). It is forecast the total spend will be £5.1 million (revenue) and £2.6 million (capital).The primary driver (and benefit) for the change is the continued provision of a reliable telephone system throughout Parliament. That being so, Lords Members will have the option to use Skype through provision of an at-desk telephone handset which operates independently of their computer. There are also a number of other benefits in moving to Skype for Business. Skype allows people to join meetings virtually from any location, and therefore opens up many opportunities for flexible and remote working. Users will be able to take advantage of conferencing and video calling, online meetings and document sharing capabilities. Traditional copper telephony requires re-routing and cabling work whenever a member of staff or a member of either House moves office. Skype offers a “lift and shift” approach, an easy way to facilitate the relocation of staff or members without the necessary re-routing work associated with traditional telephony. Looking ahead to the challenges of the restoration and renewal of the Palace of Westminster, the move to Skype will enable our telephone service to move with our users, wherever they are working. Finally, the advantage from a security point of view is that voice data on our network will have the same type of security protocols and protection as other digital data.